1. Describe the stasis in the play: where, when, who, what, etc. in a paragraph.
The play is set at an apartment in New York City, 2011. The apartment is home to Amir Kapoor and his wife, Emily. Amir is posing for a painting while he has a discussion with his wife.
2. What is the intrusion?
The intrusion occurs when Abe, Amir's nephew, comes to their apartment to discuss a case pertaining to a Muslim man being wrongly prosecuted. This part of the play shows us Amir's view on Islam, and how he reacts to it in society. This brings up the conflict between Amir and his heritage that he continually denies due to social stigma, and has completely abandoned.
3. What is the unique factor?
The unique factor is the role of Isaac in the play. Although there is an underlying argument, he is basically the catalyst for all drama in the play. He challenges Amir over and over again, while also being the deciding factor on whether or not Emily's art is in the show. He also inspires the conclusion, ending Amir and Emily's relationship has he slept with Emily before.
4. What is the dramatic question that should be answered by the end of the play?
Will Amir's view on his heritage change by the end of the play? How will his heritage and views affect his life and relationships? Amir's view does not end up changing, but his views do affect basically his whole life. He starts with being questioned at work, considering he changed his name to cover his heritage. He also made comments to a newspaper that he believed misrepresented him and his views. He later ended up in a heated argument about his views, leading his to drink more, leave, learn his wife cheated, beat her, and basically lose everything. His views are so extreme and hostile that he takes it to heart and lets it affect his whole life.
5. Provide an illustration of the two kinds of exposition that the play has in it.
The first exposition is the most obvious, when the play begins and we are introduced to the characters and the setting. The second exposition is when the dinner party begins, creating a new atmosphere of argument and difficulty between characters.
6. Identify the most theatrical moment in the play and of what importance it seems to be.
The most theatrical moment of the play comes when Amir gets drunk and decides to leave the apartment to go get champagne. This shows a lot of inner rage and obnoxiousness of his character, leading to more outbursts of anger between all characters when he arrives back.
7. List some of the themes of the play.
The first theme is pride in your culture. The play shows how social stigma and stereotypes can cause people to turn against their own people and hide who they are just so they can avoid any issues. Another theme is understanding. There are many arguments in the play, but they only get hostile when one party does not try to understand and will be very stubborn. Stubbornness basically ruined Amir's life because he was so stuck on the issue of his past religion/culture that it drives him mad.
8. What does the chief character want and what are some obstacles that stand in the way of his getting what he wants?
Amir wants to abandon his heritage and his past so that he can live in the United States without worry. His true past and his appearance stand in the way, because no matter what, people profile him based on his appearance and question him. Even after changing his name and abandoning his religion, he is still profiled just as much as any other person that somewhat resembles him.
9. Describe some possible images in the play and how does the title help us understand the play.
The image of Amir himself helps us understand this play. What he looks like and how he dresses give us a good idea of basically what the whole play is based on. Images of his apartment and his nice clothes give us the image of his success, while his appearance gives us the image of the oppression and stereotypes that come with.
10. Briefly define the family relationships that are examined in the play.
Family relationships are not quite big, because it only seems that Amir stays in most contact with his nephew. Abe goes to Amir for help and advice, but Amir seems to have more self interest, even in his relationship with his wife. It looks like Amir's concern for his own identity is shadowing things important to his loved ones, causing them to grow apart, making family relationships unimportant to him.
The play is set at an apartment in New York City, 2011. The apartment is home to Amir Kapoor and his wife, Emily. Amir is posing for a painting while he has a discussion with his wife.
2. What is the intrusion?
The intrusion occurs when Abe, Amir's nephew, comes to their apartment to discuss a case pertaining to a Muslim man being wrongly prosecuted. This part of the play shows us Amir's view on Islam, and how he reacts to it in society. This brings up the conflict between Amir and his heritage that he continually denies due to social stigma, and has completely abandoned.
3. What is the unique factor?
The unique factor is the role of Isaac in the play. Although there is an underlying argument, he is basically the catalyst for all drama in the play. He challenges Amir over and over again, while also being the deciding factor on whether or not Emily's art is in the show. He also inspires the conclusion, ending Amir and Emily's relationship has he slept with Emily before.
4. What is the dramatic question that should be answered by the end of the play?
Will Amir's view on his heritage change by the end of the play? How will his heritage and views affect his life and relationships? Amir's view does not end up changing, but his views do affect basically his whole life. He starts with being questioned at work, considering he changed his name to cover his heritage. He also made comments to a newspaper that he believed misrepresented him and his views. He later ended up in a heated argument about his views, leading his to drink more, leave, learn his wife cheated, beat her, and basically lose everything. His views are so extreme and hostile that he takes it to heart and lets it affect his whole life.
5. Provide an illustration of the two kinds of exposition that the play has in it.
The first exposition is the most obvious, when the play begins and we are introduced to the characters and the setting. The second exposition is when the dinner party begins, creating a new atmosphere of argument and difficulty between characters.
6. Identify the most theatrical moment in the play and of what importance it seems to be.
The most theatrical moment of the play comes when Amir gets drunk and decides to leave the apartment to go get champagne. This shows a lot of inner rage and obnoxiousness of his character, leading to more outbursts of anger between all characters when he arrives back.
7. List some of the themes of the play.
The first theme is pride in your culture. The play shows how social stigma and stereotypes can cause people to turn against their own people and hide who they are just so they can avoid any issues. Another theme is understanding. There are many arguments in the play, but they only get hostile when one party does not try to understand and will be very stubborn. Stubbornness basically ruined Amir's life because he was so stuck on the issue of his past religion/culture that it drives him mad.
8. What does the chief character want and what are some obstacles that stand in the way of his getting what he wants?
Amir wants to abandon his heritage and his past so that he can live in the United States without worry. His true past and his appearance stand in the way, because no matter what, people profile him based on his appearance and question him. Even after changing his name and abandoning his religion, he is still profiled just as much as any other person that somewhat resembles him.
9. Describe some possible images in the play and how does the title help us understand the play.
The image of Amir himself helps us understand this play. What he looks like and how he dresses give us a good idea of basically what the whole play is based on. Images of his apartment and his nice clothes give us the image of his success, while his appearance gives us the image of the oppression and stereotypes that come with.
10. Briefly define the family relationships that are examined in the play.
Family relationships are not quite big, because it only seems that Amir stays in most contact with his nephew. Abe goes to Amir for help and advice, but Amir seems to have more self interest, even in his relationship with his wife. It looks like Amir's concern for his own identity is shadowing things important to his loved ones, causing them to grow apart, making family relationships unimportant to him.